MBSS Site Summary for: PATL-504-X-2009

Site Photos

Located on Patapsco River in the Patapsco River L N Br watershed, 8-digit code: 02130906.
This stream was visited in the spring on 8/26/2009 and again in the summer on 8/26/2009.

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) Results:

An Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) is a scientific tool used to identify and classify stream health. An IBI associates anthropogenic influences on a stream or with biological condition in the stream, and is formulated using data developed from biosurveys.
Details on the development and application of MBSS IBIs are in this document.
Fish IBI Fair - 3.0 / 5.0
Benthic IBI N R

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 191,256 acres Cows standing in a stream at a site with high agricultural land use. Cows survey the sampling procedure at this extreme example of a highly agriculturalized site.
Urban Land Use 8 %
Agricultural Land Use 58.8 %
Forested Land Use 30.8 %


Stream showing woody debris, logs, and rocky substrate.
An example of woody debris in a stream.

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 13/20 (Suboptimal)
Epifaunal Substrate 14/20 (Suboptimal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 8/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 75 meters 		17/20 (Optimal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 0 meters 		0/20 (Poor)
Shading 55 %
Embeddedness 50 %


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 24.2 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.2 mg/L
Conductivity 270 µmho/cm

Biological Stream Condition:

Surveys of the organisms living within a stream can give indications of stream health. Species richness, or the number of different species present, as well as indicator species (species whose presence, absence or abundance can serve as a measure of environmental conditions) are informative for stream health. 		Close-up of a mayfly indicator species.

Fish Survey Results:
The following 15 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Redbreast Sunfish 169
American Eel 46
Tessellated Darter 41
Rock Bass 39
Smallmouth Bass 15
White Sucker 13
Satinfin Shiner 11
Green Sunfish 10
Yellow Bullhead 6
Cutlip Minnow 5
Northern Hogsucker 5
Bluegill 1
Pumpkinseed 1
River Chub 1
Swallowtail Shiner 1
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Eastern American Toad
Northern Ring-Necked Snake
Pickerel Frog

Crayfish:
Orconectes virilis

Exotic Plants:
Japanese Honeysuckle
Japanese Knotweed
Japanese Stiltgrass
Mile-A-Minute
Mimosa
Multiflora Rose
Oriental Bittersweet
Privet
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Benthic data unavailable.
Kick net sampling for macroinvertebrates.
Sampling with a kick net.

Information disclaimer: The information and data on this page is for guidance and general planning purposes only. It should not be used to make decisions on specific matters.